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Danielle and Erik’s wedding, captured by AbiQ Photography, is so gorgeous, it’s almost ridiculous! Even more ridiculous- almost every last detail was DIY. Can you believe it?! That amazing ceremony arch- handmade by the maid of honor. The incredible bouquets and centerpieces- put together by friends and family with flowers purchased at the flower district in LA. The to-die-for silhouette frame escort card display- also made by her maid of honor. Everything is so chic and elegant, and I can’t get enough!

More from the bride, Danielle:

We were going for a relaxed yet elegant, out right celebration with family and friends. We wanted the evening to feel fun, easy going, and romantic. We knew that if we didn’t over do it, the real beauty of Santa Barbara would do it’s own magic. We had dinner at sunset overlooking the ocean and orchards- that made it pretty hard to beat.

We knew all along that we wanted to get married outside, in natural beauty. So living in Santa Barbara it seemed the right way to go. I was blessed beyond belief because family friends of ours let us use their incredible house overlooking the ocean. I had always dreamed of getting married there and when they said we could, we were overjoyed. Backyard weddings are the best because you have ultimate control over your budget, it’s the way to go if you can.

My family and friends made the flowers and we purchased the flowers two days beforehand at the flower district in LA. We made a trip two weeks before and made personal orders with differnt vendors so we knew what we would be getting.

I also ordered dried lavender for the bridesmaid bouquets from Santa Barbara Lavender (they ship!) it saved us loads of money.

My MOH is insanely gifted with artistic things and she came up with the idea of the name cards/vintage silhouettes.

I became slightly obsessive about all things gold. It all started from the subtle gold lace on my dress. The other color we used was a silvery-blue silk that we purchased at a fabric store in the fashion district in LA that my Mom used to wrap all the centerpiece containers, flower girls accessories, and our table topper.

Advice from Danielle:

1.Hire a wedding planner so you can actually enjoy being engaged! We did not because I wanted to use the money elsewhere but in the end that help would have been priceless.
2.Find a good photographer, you can never get that day back and having an awesome photographer will make your day timeless.
3.Don’t let it consume you. In the end it is one day, not your entire lifetime. The way you treat people in that time will last longer than their memory of your wedding.
4.Force yourself to take in your emotions, you are getting married and you have waited your whole life for this, stop a moment and just think about that- and your man. That is what it’s all about. Be Thankful.